Final Fantasy XIV General

Well seeing as we're getting a load of threads pop up on different things popping into the game, I thought it would be easier if I made a general thread.

Firstly, I'd like to say the following:

If you want to come into this thread just to start shit with people who are going to buy XIV, please refrain from doing so. I'm not making you do this, but nearly every XIV thread so far has gone to the flame-core, and I'd rather keep at least one topic about the game that will be civil. If you have a personal opinion on the game, then feel free to vent it, but please do it in a positive way instead of flame-baiting. Thanks.

I thought I'd start off with some general information on the different aspects of the game. All this information has been gathered from The XIV website or interviews.

Here we go!

Story
The Age of Adventure
Men are wont to suffer
And forget wherein they’ve sinned
Ne’er hearkening back on tragedies past
Lest the Twelve might humble them
— Unknown

Countless moons have waxed and waned since wandering tribes from across Hydaelyn first arrived in Eorzea and settled its untamed lands. The benevolent deities who ruled the empty continent and its surrounding islands were impressed with the resilience of these primitive men and women, and in an act of mercy each saw fit to ensure their welfare.

These gods and goddesses soon came to be known as the Twelve, and the villages thrived in their light until the land was bespeckled with several independent city-states. Though, where man walks, strife follows, and for generations, these tiny nations carved out a history of blood and betrayal built upon broken oaths and the sun-bleached bones of the fallen.

However, the fate of the land would soon change. Not fifteen years past, a new threat appeared without warning from the east. Metal-clad warriors brandishing weapons that spewed streams of fire, fleets of behemoth airships belching oily smoke that would block out the sun for days at a time... A resistance was amassed, but to little avail, and it was not long before Ala Mhigo, once considered the most powerful of the remaining six Eorzean city-states, had fallen to the mighty Garlean Empire.

As the empire’s dreadnaughts continued their march of terror across the blood-soaked fields of the north, the remaining nations put aside their differences and clandestinely joined hands to form a loose alliance to ensure they not meet the same fate, should the invaders turn their eyes southward.

Fortunately, the invasion never came, and just as quickly as it had arrived, the empire was gone again. However, echoes of their grim message rang clear in the hearts of Eorzea’s people—its effect on them, profound and irreversible. The realm would never be the same.

And it was thus that Eorzea slipped into the “Age of Calm,” during which an uneasy peace prevailed.

To prepare for the coming storm, the first task of the newly-formed alliance was to fortify their defenses. In the previous era, few city-states maintained organized militaries, opting instead to hire the services of mercenaries and hedge knights to champion their causes. However, after the fall of Ala Mhigo, city guard units were restructured into legitimate standing armies which could be quickly called upon and mobilized if the need arose.

Unfortunately, this left a majority of the realm’s hireswords with nowhere to pledge their fealty, and with their livelihood ripped out from under them, many of these men and women resorted to acts of villainy to survive. For fear of the situation worsening and the land falling into chaos, several respected leaders from around Eorzea gathered together and formed a network of guilds to provide these lost souls with the opportunity to redeem themselves by aiding others.

Through the foresight and resolve of these leaders a new industry known as “adventuring” emerged, its advent helping usher in the current era—an era of hope in a time when shadows of uncertainty loom ever closer.

A Realm Divided

It is nigh on ten years since the fearsome beings known as the primals first appeared in these lands. Ten years since they were summoned forth by the destructive ambition of the beast tribes. Ten years, and still those tribes, drunk on the power granted them by the primals, continue to wreak havoc upon the free peoples of Eorzea.

To the northeast, the Garlean Empire stirs, casting an ominous shadow across the realm. Seeking dominion over the continent of Aldenard, the Garleans set out on a campaign of conquest, smiting all opposition with their superior technology and overwhelming military might. In a relentless drive to the south and west, they lay ruin to the once flourishing city-state of Ala Mhigo.

It is in the midst of this embattled Eorzea that a mysterious power surfaces. Known simply as the Echo, it is said cause the souls of those touched by it to resonate with others. And of this is born the ability to relive their past experiences—to see and feel them as though they were one’s own.

Can these seeds of the past somehow serve to sow hope for the future?

What is the origin of this eldritch power?

Is it a deific gift of righteousness? Or the deception of some sinister sorcery?

To what end has it been given?

The search for the answers to such questions falls to you. So go forth. Seek out and join your brethren. And together claim your place among legends in the annals of time.